Xbox One’s July System Update and Cloud Power Discussed While Microsoft Gives Fans $75 Upgrade Deal

An attendee uses her smartphone in front of a giant Microsoft Xbox sign at the 2014 Electronic Entertainment Expo, known as E3, in Los Angeles, California June 11, 2014.
REUTERS/Kevork Djansezian

Now that July has already hit, Microsoft has once again teased the Xbox One July System Update, which is set to roll out worldwide in the coming days.

For those who weren't able to get the sneak peek of the July System update preview, some of the new features include:

— Snap Mode for Achievements: this will be an easier way to view and track achievements without having to leave the game

— Double-tap to Snap: brings up the Snap Center using the double-tap on the Xbox button on the controller to launch Achievements and other snap-able apps

— Choice of Spoken Language: there will now be voice control for English or German voice for those in New Zealand, Austria and Ireland

— Future Digital Bundles and Compilation Discs: coordination with publishers to provide more options for digital bundles and compilations for the future—but this will be more of a still-testing feature

— "Like" Game DVR Clips: now gamers can like their favourite Game DVR clips and other items on the feed via the SmartGlass.

Xbox Cloud Power: The Best Bet for Multiplayer Games

Even until now, the power of the Xbox cloud, also known as Microsoft's Azure, remains a mystery in terms of how it functions and will aim to contribute to the improvement of the Xbox One.

In an attempt to give players another picture of what will come with the Xbox One cloud, GamingBolt was able to obtain a PDF document (please see link) that shows a bit of the technical side to how it all works.

According to the document, which uses the game "Wordament" as an example, Azure allows the game to collect game scores of players in a Game Room and stores them in Azure servers. There are still a couple of processes that need authentication and identification, but overall, the document in the link above may give a good glimpse of the Xbox Cloud.

Chosen Xbox 360 Owners Get $75 Off the Xbox One

Potentially as a thank you to fans, Microsoft may be fueling a new campaign to reel in more of its old fans on the Xbox 360 to make the leap to next-gen on Xbox One.

An emailed promotion spotted by a NeoGAF user shows off Microsoft's possible new campaign gig, which is offering a $75 off promo code to Xbox 360 users who have purchased an Xbox One or Xbox One bundle.

Forbes reports that, as of now, the deal is only for those in the U.S., Canada and the UK, and remains exclusively for the handpicked list that had received the email. And it's also a fast-purchase promo, as the validity is currently only for Xbox One purchases made between July 7 and 31.

This means that, once users have their Xbox One, they will then receive the code for the free $75, which they can then use for digital purchases on the Xbox Marketplace.

Forbes has also gotten in touch with Microsoft and received the following official statement:

"This short-term promotion is offered to select Xbox fans in the U.S., Canada and the U.K. We are always looking for opportunities to bring promotions like this to our customers, but we have nothing further to share at this time."